Means for controlling and reversing ships provided with propellers



Nov. 27, 1923. 1,475,695

S. GOLDEN MEANS FOR CONTROLLING AND REVERSING SHIPS PROVIDED WITHPROPELLERS Filed March 28 1923 what contracted in area.

Patented Nov. 27, 1923.

UNITED STATES 1,475,695 PATENT OFFICE.

SIDNEY GOLDEN, OF ALTRINOHAM, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO GEORGE FLINDERSJARVIS, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

MEANS FOR CONTROLLING AND REVERSING SHIPS PROVIDED \(VITH EROPELLERS.

Application filed March 23, 1923. Serial No. 628,279.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SIDNEY GOLDEN, a subject of the King of GreatBritain and Ireland, residing at Altrincham, in the county of Chester,England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Means forControlling and Reversing Ships Provided with Propellers, of which thefol lowing is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in means for controlling andreversing ships provided with propellers whereby all manoeuvering bothahead and astern, can be carried out with the propeller turning in theahead direction without modifying its revolutions.

' According to this invention, a tubular body is mounted to swing abouta :substantially vertical axis intersecting the axis of rotation of thepropeller, and to enclose the wake thereof, the said body actingnormally as the rudder and being provided with means to form anadjustable abutment therein at will for partially or wholly arrestingthe wake, whereby the direction of the wake can be reversed or partiallyreversed, and be directed forward for movement directly astern, ordirected to port or starboard for steering while going astern. Moreover,by balancing the wake so that half goes astern and half ahead, the shipwill remain stationary assuming there to be no current, and can beturned on its "centre by giving it helm.

The means for forming the abutment, comprises a plate pivoteddiametrically inside the tubular body behind the propeller in the mannerof the movable valve element of the butterfly type of valve.

The tubular body forms the rudder or manoeuvering tube and preferablysurrounds the propeller at its forward end, and the sides at this endare preferably splayed or flared outward in a horizontal plane, so thatthe astern end may be some- The valve lies normally in a featheringposition in the wake of the propeller, from which position it is allowedan angular movement of about ninety degrees and it can be fixed atdifferent angles within this range so that the passage through thetubular body can be varied in area from full bore to total closure. Thevalve is operated and fixed in the desired positions, from inside theship 'in two different positions.

movement.

by means of any suitable mechanism either manually or by power and insuch a way that there is no interference with the freedom of giving theship helm. i

The accompanying sheet of drawings,

shows how my invention may be carried tional elevation upon an enlargedscale.

Figures 5 and 6 represent the rudder and valve in sectional elevationwith the valve Figures 7 and 8 are diagrammatic views in plan, ofmodifications in the disposition and manner of operating the valve.

Referring to Figures 1 to 60f the drawings-the tubular body or ruddercasing 1 is shown cylindrical at the astern end 2 but forward is splayedor flared at the sides as seen at 3, Figures 2 and 3, by which thecasing may be. smaller in average circlearance at the sides to allow thewake when reversed, to pass out more freely forward. The part of thecasing forward of the axis of the rudder stock is suitably proportionedin length to that part aft of the rudder stock, in order to efiicientlybalance the rudder; The rudder casing may be indented at one or at eachend at the top and bottom as indicated at 4;, see Figure 3, mainly inorder to reduce weight.

lhe butterfly valve 5 is mounted to turn on a horizontal axis 6 asshown, the pivots 7 being secured to the valve in any suitable way. Thejournal bearings are indicated by 8. The axis of the valve is kept asfar forward as will allow of just sufficient freedom of movement whenthe valve is in its normal position. In the drawings, the valve is shownas just fitting the casing 1 and adapted to close the passage throughwhen it is vertical with the axis of the casing, and. stops 9 areprovided to limit its The valve may however be made to tit and close thepassage by edge contact with the casing in the usual manner of thebuterfly valve. A suitable forked lug such as 10 Figures 2, 4, 5 and 6,may be secured to the valve for the connection of the operating device.

.cumference while still providing sufficient The-rudderstock isindicated by 11 and in the case illustrated in Figures 1 to 6, istubular. A sliding core or rod 12 passing down'the' hollow stock 11, isemployed to operate the valve. core slides in an-annular guide 13 at thebottom and carries an arm 14 rigidly fixed to it, the arm havinga slot15 inthe end and passing through the lug 10, a bolt 16 or the likecOnne'ctingthetwo parts together. p

The low'er end 17 of the annular gu ide, forms the bottom' pintle' oftherudder.

The "rudder stock is turned in the usual way. As shown, a tiller 18 isfixed to'the stock-11 and at the inner end of the tiller is carriedabell-crank lever" 19 with forked end 20 which'embraces a collar 21fixed to the sliding core 12. The bell-crank lever 19 is connected to ahand lever 22 pivoted tothe free end'of the tiller at 23,-by means ofthe couplingrod 24. A notchedsector-25 is also fixed to the tillerso-that the hand lever can beheld at definite points corresponding'todifferent angular positions of the valve. Any other suitable knownmechanism may be employed for operating the valve from the head of thestock in place of that shown in the drawings If 'the' valve 5 werearranged vertically, 0bviously-the"core12"would require tobe turnedinstead of being slided as the operating arm l l would require to moveangularly. This modification isshown diagrammati cally 'in'plaininFigure 7.

In place 'of a core '12; a tubular shaft 26 i may enclose" or surroundthe rudder stock and a lever arm 27 may be fixedthereto at the lower-'end' and another 'arm- 28 fixed to the iv'ot'7 of thevalveoutsidethecasing, see iagram in plan'in Figure 8.

The horizontal position of' the valve shown in Figure 4, is the normalone, that is to say, the valveis' in a'feathering position'in relationto the'walre and functionally inoperative.

In Figure 3 the valve is shown at an angle of about forty-five degrees.The actual position of the valve to cause the ship to pull upand'reniain stationary would be in'the neighbon'rhoodo fthis angle, pi'ohahly several degrees less in many cases; the best-position wouldhave to be found by trial. By varying the angle of the'valve on eachside of this neutral line, both the forward and astern speeds of theship can be modified without varying the speed of or reversing'the'propeller; Figure 6 shows theposition of the valve forfullspeedastern.

In cross section, the tubular body may be circular, elliptical orelongated, or-reetangularforthe full length or for pa'rt of itslengtlronly. For instance,the after'pa-rt of the tubular body mayberectangular or in the form of a regular polygon, while the The lower endof the forward part may be either polygonal, circular or of a somewhatelliptical form as shown in the drawings.

I claim L'A'ship provided with a propeller, a reversing and controllingmeans comprising a tubular body mounted'to swing about a substantiallyvertical axis intersecting the axis of rotation of the propeller and toenclose the wake thereof said body being splayed laterally at theforward endthereof and a"butterfiy.," type of valve element behind thepropeller and pivoted to the sides of said body inside with thepivotsthereof in a horizontal plane, said valve elementbe ing mounted so as toswing from a feathering position in thewake of the propeller into anapproximately verticalposition-relative to the axis of the tubularbodyand adapted-to completely close the passage through saidbody to thewake of thepropeller' andstopsto prevent said valve ele ment frompassingbeyond said feathering and vertical positions, and means operatedfrom inside the ship for swinging said'valve element and holding itinany desired angular position in the are through which it can move.

2 A ship'provided with a propeller, a reversing and controlling meanscomprising a tubular body mounted to swing about a substantiallyvertical axis intersecting the axis of rotation of the propeller and toenclose the wake thereof and a valve element of the-butterfly typepivotedin said body wholly close the passage through said body to thewakeof the propeller, and means for turning said valve onits axis frominside the'ship, comprising a shaft concentric with the "rudder post andhaving an independent motion, the lower endof said shaft being pivotallyconnected-to said valve element through lever arms, and the upper endtliereof'being movable-relatively to said rudder post b'y' means ofmechanical elements connected with the manual controlling device.

A ship provided with a propeller,- a-reversing and controlling meanscomprising a tubular body mounted to swing about a substantiallyvertical axisintersecting-- the axis of 'rotationof the propeller and toenclose the wake thereof, said body being splayed laterally at theforward end, and a valve element of the butterflytype adapted to form anadjustable abutment in said body behind the propeller so as to-partiallyor wholly close the passage therethrough' to the wake of the propeller,and means operated from inside the'ship for-adjusting saidvalve'elementinto a full or'a partially feathering position or-into afull or a partially wake arresting position com prising a shaftconcentric with the rudder manoeuvering tube and its hollow rudder 10post and having an independent motion the stock of a valve plate pivotedwithin the lower end of said shaft being pivotally contube, a rodslidable in the stock and supnected to said valve element through leverported in said tube, a fixed arm on the rod,

5 arms, and the upper end thereof being movand an operative connectionbetween said able relatively to said rudder post by means arm and valveplate, and means for reoipro- 15 of mechanical elements connected withthe eating said rod. manual controlling device.

4. The combination with a rotatable SIDNEY GOLDEN.

